Hoke, who often speaks colloquially while addressing the general public, as he was here, probably didn't think the comment would gain such traction nationally. He certainly didn't mean it maliciously.

And that's not how Notre Dame took it.

“We all recognize that stuff you say at a booster club or a pep rally generally (can be like that),” Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick told CBSSports.com. “I take no umbrage at what someone says at either of those two functions.”

"It sounded a lot like Brady," Brandon said in Chicago with a smile. "I probably wouldn't use those exact words, but we were disappointed. When I say we, our student-athletes, our coaches, all of us in athletic administration, we were all really disappointed to be put in a position where that rivalry is going to end."

Michigan and Notre Dame have played 40 times, including every season since 2002, but Swarbrick cancelled games from 2015-17 as the Irish move to an annual five-game scheduling alliance with the ACC. He served Brandon with the three-game cancellation notice on the field before last year's game at Notre Dame Stadium.